Fur sure

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What a knockout: model Tiah Eckhardt is to appear in the new glossy mag Follow.Photo: Justin Smith

His new glossy magazine is called Follow but editor
Mark Vassallo doesn't seem to take leads from elsewhere. Here is a
sneak peek from photographer Justin Smith's "Knockout" spread in
the first edition, to be launched on June 21, showing model Tiah
Eckhardt in Christian Dior tank, Tsubi jeans, Autore jewellery -
and a floor-length kangaroo coat.

As other local glossies, wary of a backlash, steer clear of
promoting fur, Vassallo not only shows furs from Lisa Ho and Conti
Moda but also commissioned leather craftsman Julio Valdes to tailor
the featured coat from 10 kangaroo pelts. Chilean-born Valdes is
one of Australian fashion's best-kept secrets. He makes to order
(leather jackets start at $1000) and his clients include Tina
Kalivas, Akira Isogawa, Paablo Nevada, Opera Australia and Barry
Humphries.

Bag lady

Sydney publicist Marina Saraceno has been collecting vintage
handbags for 20 years and her cache at one point contained 600
examples from the 1900s to the 1980s. For the past two years she's
been selling them - and on Sunday Saraceno parts with the final 100
at the Sydney University Antiques Fair. Brands include Christian
Dior, YSL, Pierre Cardin, Hollywood Handbags and Faigen and prices
range from $10 for a fabric tote up to $395 for a boxy 1940s style
in alligator and lizardskin. Examples include a 1950s cane barrel
bag, $85. That will leave Saraceno with 50 can't-live-without
purses, including a 1950s Christian Dior and some Lucite
lunchboxes. "They'll never go," she says. "I'm leaving those to my
child." The Great Hall, Sydney University, Parramatta Road,
Camperdown, 9am-5pm. Inquiries, 0403 820 220.

Wu hoo

Every third boutique along the Woollahra end of Oxford Street
seems to be moving - many blame Westfield Bondi Junction for the
lemming-like exodus but Incu is bucking the trend. We've told you
about new stores around the Glenmore Road intersection (amorica,
Kitten, Miss Amour, Kit) but last week Incu opened a second store
at 256 Oxford Street, the space vacated by Swellstore. The original
Incu, opened in Galeries Victoria in late 2002 by twins Brian and
Vincent Wu, sells a hip international label mix including Trovata,
Misericordia, Blue Cult, Marc Jacobs, Twinkle, Umbro and
Australasians Karen Walker, Lover, Gorman and Kate Sylvester. Most
will carry over - but BCBG Max Azria and AG Jeans are exclusive to
Incu Paddington.

Male bling thing

In the US, it is dubbed the Queer Eye for the Straight
Guy effect: a spike at the bling end of the men's jewellery
business. Some say it is the next phase in the evolution of the
metrosexual, which has also seen a surge in the men's cosmetics
business here. Jewellery companies are reporting increased interest
from men in their flashier merchandise, with Cartier, Tiffany &
Co, Louis Vuitton and others launching men's collections to meet
demand. First came Ian Thorpe's Autore pearl necklaces. Tiffany
& Co's Australian branch says it has received greater interest
from men in rings over the past 18 months. Denmark's Georg Jensen
launched a men's range last year and its Australian arm reports
that it can't keep some items in stock. Men are also buying women's
items, with Jensen's gold, white gold and diamond Fusion ring
($5200) proving popular.

No doubt men also will love the pave diamond version of the same
ring ($47,000), just launched in Jensen's Master Diamonds
Collection.

Mores the merrier

Matters of etiquette make for amusing reading in the first book
from the fashion editor of The Australian Financial Review
Magazine, David Meagher. It's Not Etiquette: A Guide to
Modern Manners ($29.95), available next month, is part-Emily
Post and part-Chic Happens (the defunct online gossip column).
Meagher illustrates his social recommendations with numerous
personal anecdotes. Gems from the sartorial etiquette section -
most of which concern men - include: "Unless you are going to a
mafia funeral, a black suit, black shirt and black tie is not a
good look for work." And, "If your pants are so tight that you need
to wear a G-string, then your pants are too tight. The only thing
worse than a VPL is a VGL."